Big Bites

Today, y'all, my good friend Aaron McCargo

AKA Big Daddy, is gonna be stopping by to prepare some of his favorite dishes

Aaron's gonna start us off with his rockin' roast pork shoulder. Look at the way it's comin' off of that bone

And then he's gonna show us the secret ingredient for his Spanish rice. Sasson

Sasson, y'all. And then we're gonna fry up some Cajun tempura okra

There you go. This is lookin' delicious. And while that's frying, we're gonna be makin' a scallion dipping sauce

You are gonna be fine, says Mama. And to top off this whole meal, y'all, a candy snack cake with a chocolate frosting

You are Big Daddy's girl! So tell us exactly what we're going to need, Erin, to get this beautiful piece of pork shoulder underway for you

Got you. We're going to need like 12 cloves of garlic, which we're going to smash slightly

And we're going to put in 12 slices we're going to make. Okay. One onion. I already got a bell pepper to make this so pretty well

and we're going to need some cilantro. Okay, so you need garlic, you need onion

Yipper. Oh, we got cilantro right here. Okay. And I'm one of those girls that loves to try all kinds of spices

So what is this? Sasson. Sasson, y'all. This is Spanish season we use a lot, more so for color

I'm learning something new here today. Just tell me what you want me to do

We're going to chump two thin slices of this, and we're going to cube it up, and we're going to fry

because we're going to make our Spanish rice later. I'm going to let you go ahead and put some slits, and then let me get this off my hands. Okay

You said you wanted like a dozen cloves of garlic. It's just like cutting butter down in there

You know what? I chewed the pork up pretty good so that it's firm because it's easier to cut

It just feels like, you know, if it chews as tender as it's cutting, I think it's going to be very, very good

Definitely. Let's see. Two, four, six, eight, ten, twelve. The more of the slits, the better

I'm just gonna take our garlic and give it a whack. You got it

You're gonna stick the whole thing down in there. That's perfect. Gonna just stuff him down in there

Paula, while you're doing that, I'm gonna chop up this onion, throw in the peppers and the onions

chop up the cilantro, and get that in. And I'm gonna put some olive oil in here

We just wanna make a little smooth paste of this. Okay, well, let me grab you some olive oil

All right. Here we go. There you go, darling. And as soon as you're done with that garlic

I'm going to let you go ahead and make this. The rub up, which is real simple rub

it's just going to be that sazon and adobo. And pretty much adobo is just the Latin

Spanish version of seasoned salt. You know, it has a nice amount of salt in there

It has some garlic flavors, some onion, and some hidden ingredients that we'll never know

And one thing about pork, I like to cook the pork nice and slow so that fat breaks down

And then it just, and with these slits right here, all that juice that's just going to close up

and keep that garlic in there. and it's going to really marinate the meat inside out. I'm going to measure out a quarter cup of olive oil

pour it in, and flip the switch. And we're going to save a little bit of this for later

because we're going to put something in our Spanish rice as well. Okay. Now, are you pureeing that up pretty good

Yes. You know what? I'm going to do like it. I want it to be like a paste. Gosh, it smells so good

I always think of this when I think of spring. All right, so I'm going to run down here and wash my hands, Aaron

Okay. Or Big Daddy. I love it when you call me Big Daddy

I love it when I call you Big Daddy. A lot of love in here

We're going to go ahead and sit this pork right in here after you've done that, and we're going to season everything in there

Now, what is this? Now, that's that adobe. Oh, okay. That's the Latin version of seasoned salt

So you're going to probably use about like a tablespoon of that. You're going to put like three envelopes of that sauce on there

Three envelopes. Oh, okay. Yes. Got a nice, bright orange color to it

All right, so I'm just going to stir that together. We've got a pretty yellowish orange

Now, we got this sofrito, and we got your seasoning. We'll put you about quarter cup

Yeah. There you go. When you get that mixed up, and you get that smell. So we're going to have a wet paste

There you go. And it's going to sink into those holes with this garlic. I'm just going to spoon it on

and I'm going to do one of my favorite things in the kitchen

and that's rubbing my meat and massaging it. This is one of the things that I enjoy

And look at this. You can see the little bit of fat that we have on this pork

that is turning a bright yellow. We're just going to transfer it to the bowl

Transfer it into the dish. You got this looking real good. So it's ready to go. Beautiful

Look at that. Do you like the color? I love the color of it. Yeah. Paul, I'm going to cover up this pork with some aluminum foil

So in my oven. In your oven. And say 300? About 300

300, Darren? Yep. For three hours? Three hours. And then? Then we're going to take off the foil, bump up the heat

about 4 450 20 minutes till it crispy on the top Just let that little bit of fat just Nice and crispy off It sounds delicious

What we're going to do is that pork we trimmed up earlier, we cut off, we're going to cut that in cubes

Okay. And I'm going to do that with a small diced onion. Okay. We're going to throw it in there with about two tablespoons of butter

Okay. Is that cool with you? This is sounding so good. Okay. All right, well, get started

Oh, excuse me. No, no. I didn't mean to knock your watch out. That was a love tap. I'm going to just slip in here and find me a spoon

Okay. And I'm going to dice this onion up real quick, and we're going to add that with the butter

And you said a couple of tablespoons. You got it. Do the parlor tablespoons, of course

Okay. That looks perfect. Beautiful. Now I'm just going to dice these onions

Throw it over here in the pot, honey. You got it. All right, so we're going to dice them. Yep

I want this like in real small pieces. Uh-huh. What do you want me to add to this

We're going to go back to the sassong. We're going to open those two packs. So you figure about a tablespoon

They're actually half-ounce packs. And then we're going to go with a tablespoon of adobo

So you want a little black pepper? Yep. Now we're going to add two cups of rice

Now I'm going to go ahead and get four cups of water in here. I put this on the top

Okay. About two tablespoons. It's going to boil halfway. Once we start to see the rice a little bit

kill it down a real low. Okay. put the lid on it, and we don't stir it at all

And just let it cook away. Yeah, so we're going to about 40 minutes. Okay. Coming up, Big Daddy shows me a new way

to fry up one of my old-time favorites. You are going to be fine, says Mama

Then we're going to move on to a scallion dipping sauce for our fried okra

It don't need nothing. And later, I show Big Daddy a thing or two about bacon

Big Daddy here doesn't like to be held back. Where did you get that name, Big Daddy

You know what? I actually got the name Big Daddy from being on the Next Food Network store

Kelsey would come and say, you're like my Big Daddy. She's like, you're just a big guy

So I kept it up. Well, that's a very good name. I like that. We're up here slicing okra, y'all

and Aaron's got me taking these okras and slicing them down the middle

So I don't know what he's got cooking here, but he's cooking something up

I just love okra any way I can get it. So I'm thrilled that you've chosen

to share an okra recipe with us. Well, I'm going to tell you what

It's a very simple tajun-sempora recipe. We're going to get this thing going

Okay. I've got our fryer all heated up for us. Now, what you're going to do is

I'm going to let you go ahead and start with the wet, and I'm going to start with the dry. Pretty much you're going to need a tablespoon of sugar

Okay. You're going to need a cup of cornstarch, and you're going to need a cup of flour

And then we're going to go with 16 ounces of soda water. Foaming up in there like a carbonated drink

So with my dry mix, all I'm going to do is put in here a cup of flour. I always like to have the flour first so that when you're soaking all this stuff into the flour

it sticks and it will help the tempura stick to it. And what are you going to add to it

And now I'm going to add a tablespoon of cashew seasoning. So what I'm going to do is put a tablespoon to a cup of flour

So it's going to have a little bite. Exactly. A little bite. And then also I'm going to put about two tablespoons, which we're going to sprinkle on here

But once we get it all in, and when you bite over it, you're going to get the bite from the flour. Good

It's going to bite me fast. I like that. Well, you're going to get a big bite

I'm just going to sprinkle this over. We're just going to mix it. You want me to just kind of toss it? Yes, you know it

You know it. Okey-doke. So first, I toss the okra with the Cajun spice

Then Aaron's going to toss them in our dry ingredients. And when he's done, I'm going to toss them in the wet ingredients

I'm going to give them a little shake and then just drop them in the peanut oil that's been preheated to 375 degrees

This is looking delicious. Beautiful. All right, so our sauce. I'm going to chop you up about a cup of scallions

You've got some sour cream here. You've got honey. Mm-hmm. So you're going to need that whole container, about 16 ounces of sour cream

Okay. And about a quarter cup of the honey. And I brought the cayenne pepper back into the picture for a little bit more of that hidden heat

Okie dokie. Michael Grover's going to love you. All right, say like a quarter of a cup

Quarter of a cup. We're just going to add that hidden sweetness. That looks like a quarter of a cup

See, that opens looking good. It might not get to make it to the sauce. We may have to fry up some more of this stuff

All right, I'm going to cut it up just a little bit more. Okay

All right, so how much of the cayenne? About a teaspoon, but to each his own

Okay, so about a teaspoon. I'm just gonna shake it on in there

because I don't want to accidentally put a... Why are you doing it

Let me put... Big old whop of that. That has so many scallions in there. Oh, gosh

Look at the color. This is looking wonderful, y'all. I'm probably going to need a good teaspoon and a half of salt

because we're going to salt that over, of course, when it comes out. Sour cream demands salt, doesn't it

Yes it does Yes it does All right so about a teaspoon You got it Paul I think it time for me to check on the roast Oh Paula look at this Look at what going on Oh you just hush

And look at that little layer of fat, y'all. Ooh. And I'm gonna crank this up and up

And look at here, Erin. Now, I want you to look at our okra. All right, I'm gonna stick my finger in this

It gets salty enough. And I'm gonna stick my finger in it, too. Oh

Paula, it don't need nothing. It don't need nothing except a set of lips

Look-a there, y'all. Yes. I'm going to go ahead and chop the cilantro. Okay

What you going to do with that? That's going to go into our rice. I was going to say, don't put it in this

We don't need a thing. Oh, no. No. And then I'm going to go ahead and crack these peas open

Look at this tempura batter, y'all. Nice and light. Isn't that pretty

Once you salt it, I'm going to taste it. You want me to salt it

A little bit. Okay. And you kind of need to do that, like, right out of the fryer

Right out of the fryer. You know, so it'll stick to it. I'm, like, starving

Me too. Okay, well, I think I might let mine cool a little bit by dipping it in that

Let me know what you think. You are going to be fine, says Mama

Says Mama, I take it. That's a compliment. And you love it

Mmm. It's like an okra wrapped in chips. It is like an okra chip

Mm-hmm. I'm just finishing up the cilantro for the rice. I think I'll have one more

Go ahead. I'm going to crack over these pigeon peas. I'm going to drain them off

I'm going to have you add two tablespoons of cilantro. Now I'm going to add the pigeon peas

And, Paul, this pea is also known as the no-eyed pea. It's the lagoon most popular in the tropical regions

Now all we need is the lid, and we're good to go. So it's not going to take but just a minute

If the okra is this good, I can only imagine, y'all, what the pork's gonna taste like

Coming up, it's time to get the roast out of the oven. Look at the way it's coming off of that bone

We get started on our snack cake. Doesn't that sound wonderful, y'all

And later, you'll never guess what I'm gonna add to the frosting. Is that not looking sinfully delicious

I'm speechless. All right, so we're gonna get the meat out? Yes, we are

Oh, my God. It looks delicious. Look at the way it's coming off of that bone

Ooh, and that pretty orange color. Yes. You know, I think this fabulous meal that you have prepared us today deserves a sweet ending

I'm going to make you a candy bar snack cake. Come on down here with me

I'm going to start by creaming one cup of softened butter. and then if you would break each egg

You got it. So you want to measure me out a cup of sugar? You got it

And I want you to tell everybody, when you were a little boy, you did bake

Yes, I did. Tell everybody what you used. You know what? I got to feel someone put you up for this one

But honestly, we had an easy-baked oven. We would get like the peppermints, candy

whatever we had for snack, all over the room. And I would put it in an easy-baked pan

and I would bake it in the oven. And that was dessert. So I guess my mom and dad knows where all those cavities came from

Thank you. Well, you know what? I am so jealous. I never had that easy bake oven

I'm gonna throw in the last egg. If you would just measure us out like a teaspoon of vanilla flavoring

And this is looking pretty good. I'm gonna come over here and I'm gonna put our dry ingredients together. Okay

And I'm gonna add a fourth of a cup of cocoa. and I'm going to add one cup of all-purpose flour

a half a teaspoon of bacon powder, a quarter of a teaspoon of salt

You want to start creaming that. All right. I'll just kind of start adding that to our butter and sugar

Gotcha. Okay. This is a regular routine. Bacon is really a formulated process

and something tells me that Big Daddy here doesn't like to be held back

You know Big Daddy well. That's right. Big Daddy likes to just dive in

and go for it. You said it. We keep you in line when we're baking

All right, now I'm just going to take our spatula. Beautiful. And bring those dry ingredients down

I'll finish this up. Okay. And I tell you what, I've got an 8x8 pan over there

And I've got some tinfoil. Okay. If you would just line that pan with the foil, then we'll be ready to pour our battery in

And you want to make it bigger than the pan so we have something to lift it out with

All right. So I got my battery ready. All right. All right

Pan is ready for you, Paula. If you hold the bowl I scrape our battery in You got it And we going to bake this for 22 minutes in a 350 degree oven Get it in here Big Daddy

I got you, Ms. Paula. All right, bottom shelf? All right, in the oven

What time is it? You know what time it is. Eating time. Hallelujah

Hallelujah. Two times. Oh, my God. Oh, my goodness. This is just out of this world

Coming up, we top the cake with our candy frosting. I apologize

And I surprise Big Daddy with one of his childhood favorites. All right, now we're going to do the best part of this candy bar snack cake, which is the icing

Gotcha. So I'm going to add about a fourth of a cup of butter, which is a half a stick

If you'd measure out two tablespoons of cocoa. So we just want to mix our cocoa up in that little bit of butter

Now we're going to add three tablespoons of buttermilk. Here's a cup of confectioner's sugar

I'm going to add another cup later. So I know y'all are wondering, well, where's the candy bar

If you would chop those candy bars up, I'm going to put them over in here and let them melt

I went with a candy bar that was filled with peanuts, caramel, and nugget. Aaron, get that cake out of the oven

Okay. Because this is melting pretty good. Oh, it looks beautiful. Look at this thing

Oh, gosh, it does. All right, why don't you just turn that out. Okay

Just like that. You got it. On to that cake and that tinfoil

I see why you used the foil now. Yeah, so. And you're going to put your frosting, y'all, on the cake while it's warm

Okay. Oh, my goodness. No problems at all. Perfect. Perfect. Perfect, just like everything else that we cooked today

Yes. And listen, I don't do anything, Erin, that I don't have fresh whipped cream for, do I, y'all

You got it. So grab that fresh cream. All right. And that's our second cup of confectionate sugar

Okay. Want this mint to come over, too? Absolutely. Is that not looking sinfully delicious

I'm speechless. I'm politized. You're politized. Yes. We're going to put that on our warm cake

Okay. You want to do the honors? All righty. Just pour it right on top

Okay. Oh, my God. I know. Oh, my God. Wait now. With a light hand, honey

Just help him roll down a little bit. Beautiful. Lick that spoon

All right. So let's cut us a piece. Mm-hmm. Oh, my God

I see why you do the homemade whipped cream. I'm like a little kid right now

Come on, Mommy. Happy to have. I know it. You're teasing me. Why are you taking so long

We're not going to be ready. I'm getting so excited. I can't even pinch off my mint

I'm getting excited. Are you? I'm very excited. Oh, my turn. All right, and I saved us a little something for garnish

You are a big daddy's girl. Oh, God. You do it big, baby

I love it. Yes, I like it big, honey. You do it big. We're going to have our dessert on the sofa

Okey-dokey. If you can get over here, if the dogs sit here

a minute. I want you to dig in. I do want to dig in

Look at my voice got all high on you. Goodness. Is it not delicious

Love. First word that came to my mind. Well, I feel the same way

about everything that you fixed. And before we close today, though, I've got something for you

Oh, really? Yes, I do. Just for you. And guess what

Oh, my goodness. Just for me. I got an easy back oven

I love it. I'm speechless. You're going to be wonderful. And let me be one of the first ones to wish you Godspeed

Thank you. And as always, you know that I always, always send you loving best dishes from my kitchen to yours

We'll see you all next time. So go home and bake! We're going to bake

I will